WELL; Really? The Claim: An ice bath can soothe sore muscles.

By ANAHAD O'CONNOR

Published: February 21, 2012

THE FACTS

For most people, the only time jumping into ice might sound like a great idea is after a grueling workout. Athletes have used so-called cold therapy for years, saying it reduces inflammation, speeds recovery and prevents muscle soreness.

Baseball stars like C. J. Wilson of the Texas Rangers swear by cold therapy. The San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets and other N.B.A. teams provide players with high-tech cryotherapy machines. And Paula Radcliffe, the British runner, said she took a 10-minute ice bath after setting her world-record marathon time in 2003. ''It takes the inflammation down in my legs,'' she said.

According to research, ice baths can be helpful - at least in comparison to doing nothing. In a new report in The Cochrane Library, researchers at the University of Ulster in Ireland pooled data from 17 studies involving 366 people, many of whom sat in ice baths for several minutes after cycling, running or lifting weights. Compared with passive rest after exercise, a short bout of cold therapy reduced soreness by 20 percent, the researchers found.

''There was some evidence that cold-water immersion reduces muscle soreness at 24, 48, 72 and even at 96 hours after exercise compared with 'passive' treatment,'' the researchers wrote.

But they noted a caveat: There has been little study of cold therapy versus active treatments, like compression sleeves or ibuprofen. There are also side effects. Immersion in ice-cold water can cause shock and increase heart rate. The researchers also noted that the long-term safety of regular ice baths has not been studied well.

THE BOTTOM LINE

There is some evidence that ice baths can reduce muscle soreness, but it is not clear whether they are more effective than other treatments.

scitimes@nytimes.comnThis is a more complete version of the story than the one that appeared in print.